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Old 09-19-2018, 12:55 AM   #1
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Our Chilliwack Sojourn

I’ve always enjoyed reading people’s exploits when picking up their trailers so I thought I’d post ours here with the intent of helping some and, if nothing else, entertaining others. Sorry it’s so long...

We arrived in Chilliwack on a Friday and checked into the Blackberry Lane B&B which is located outside Chilliwack in the hamlet of Agassiz. It’s a lovely B&B set on a 20 acre farm with hosts that couldn’t be more charming or interesting. After a great weekend of sightseeing (wineries, Othello tunnels, etc.) and partaking in wonderful meals at the B&B and local restaurants, we checked into ETI on Monday morning for our orientation.

ETI has really improved their orientation with a mock setup of the trailer. It is so much easier to understand the workings of the trailer when you can actually see how each unit within the trailer functions. After the orientation, we were taken to the floor where our trailer(s) were located and shown in ‘real time’. We were having the Springfield table installed so that was done while we were waiting. After our rather haphazard orientation when we picked up our 19’ in 2014, this time I went over everything with a fine toothed comb (I thought). There were a few issues (the Springfield table didn’t ‘seat’ right and the oven cover came off in my hands when I tried to close it) but they were quickly resolved. Unfortunately, the television we brought didn’t fit with the ETI mounting we ordered so that couldn’t be installed. Then, we couldn’t find out how the stereo/DVD connected to the television. Upon questioning this, we were told that the DVD unit ‘probably’ needed to be removed in order to connect the cables – not what we wanted to hear since the unit is screwed firmly into the cabinet.

Dennis, as usual, was amazing and helped with our questions after he had hooked up our Fastway hitch and delivered our trailer to us in Sumas, going over how to use the hitch and other features.

After hitching up, we were off to the Lynden KOA. That place is great! We met a lovely couple who enjoyed talking about trailers and showing us some of the features we had that were similar to their trailer. (Note: We had the two-way water heater on our 19’ but never used the electric. This gentleman filled me in on the benefits of using the electric and sold me on having it on whenever we’re hooked up to shore power.) From there we went to the Mount St. Helen’s KOA (it’s okay, but there are too many ‘permanent’ residents) and then to Canyonville, Oregon, to one of our favorite ‘resorts’, Seven Feathers. As usual, we were put next to the largest rig in the park (see photo). If you want to check out this RV, search on ForeTravel diesel-pushers and marvel at what $1M will buy. Our last nights were spend at Premier RV Resort in Redding (Durango, in Red Bluff, was full).

Staying at improved campsites gave us a chance to fully check out the trailer. We are more than pleased with the 21’ and feel it better suits our camping style than our 19’ did (to each his own). Some of the pros and cons so far are:

Cons
1. When my husband used the bathroom sink, he was showered, literally, with water coming from the shower head. Granted we opted for the Oxygenics Fury (approved by ETI) and coiled hose, but we would have thought ETI might have checked it out after installing. For whatever reason, the shower head just wouldn’t work so we bought a cheapie from Walmart, installed it, and it worked just fine ... no leaking. The Fury is going back!
2. Couldn’t use the DVD player for the reasons noted above.
3. We have a window over the drawer stack and, while it doesn’t leak, it is slightly skewed when you open it. Will have to see if it causes a problem down the line.
4. We ordered custom fabric for our dinette. It has a vertical pattern and, even though one side is oriented fine, when you flip it over, the pattern is upside down (see photos). Note to others, you need to specify how you want BOTH sides to be oriented

Pros
1. Love the extra storage space in the 21’. And, while we know it’s only 2’ longer, inches wider and higher, it just seems so much larger.
2. The Jack Antenna and TV ready options are great (didn’t have them before).
3. The Springfield table works fine and the slider is perfect, even though it slides a bit too easily. The only issue is the table hits the corner of one wall and but not the other (thankfully).
4. Love not having to use a match or lighter to light the stovetop burners -- the piezo igniters work great!
5. Heater is fairly quiet, A/C works fine (still a little loud) and the digital thermostat works great. The MaxxFan (now that I know how to work it) is terrific and keeps things cleared out.
6. My husband loves his power tongue jack. SO much easier than hand cranking. Plus, the Fastway hitch system is much easier for him than the Andersen – even though we were skeptical at first.
7. Love our sliding windows AND our Carefree awning which was deployed at almost every site to keep the rain off our heads.
8. Lastly, our deep sink and one-handled faucet (both options) are great ... even if I did lose some storage space under the sink.

Because getting DMV appointments in the Bay Area is problematic, I had made an appointment at the Red Bluff DMV. Not only is it in a small-ish town, it is located on a very wide street that faces empty lots so there is lots of parking. On a Monday morning, I was in and out of there in less than an hour and a half – pretty good for California!
Attached Thumbnails
1-Mutt and Jeff.jpg   1-Unser Ei Zwei Outside.jpg   1-Fabric, Correct Orientation.jpg   1-Fabric, Reverse Orientation.jpg  
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Old 09-19-2018, 11:52 AM   #2
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Then, we couldn’t find out how the stereo/DVD connected to the television. Upon questioning this, we were told that the DVD unit ‘probably’ needed to be removed in order to connect the cables – not what we wanted to hear since the unit is screwed firmly into the cabinet.
If this is still the Boss Audio unit, or similar, the only video output is on the back, it is a primitive composite video signal (for the "yellow" cable), and ETI does not connect anything to it. They really treat it as an audio-only system, and in my opinion that's all it is good for, but if you want the video you can pull the unit out, plug in a cable, and route that cable to the TV location yourself. There are some threads in the forum discussing this, particularly in another new owner's report: First Impressions.
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Old 09-19-2018, 12:29 PM   #3
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Thanks so much for this link Brian. At least, as they say, 'we're not alone' (and, yes, it is a Boss unit). We, too, asked specifically about hooking it up to the TV and were told just to 'plug it in at the back'. At the time, we thought there must be an opening to just 'plug in' ... didn't realize that we'd be taking the whole unit off the cabinet. While it is nice to have everything wired for us, I'm still puzzled as to what it would have taken for ETI to just plug in an RCA cable in before mounting it to the underside of the cabinet.
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Old 09-19-2018, 12:32 PM   #4
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yup i removed the Boss unit to plug in yellow cable i have a 5th wheel so i drilled a hole to the bed area where the TV is located . i bought an adapter so my TV would fit on the TV mount. found one on amazon after taking pictures of my TV back and the ETI mount.
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Old 09-19-2018, 12:43 PM   #5
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Yup same with the previous Jensen stereo option. I just removed the unit and connected a yellow video cable and routed it up to the tv through the cabinet above the unit on the 5.0TA.
Not a big deal and easy to do, as others have mentioned ETI advertises and sells it as a stereo system, not a surround sound or DVD player. I was just happy to be able to utilize these extra unit functions.
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Old 09-19-2018, 12:44 PM   #6
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i love your upholstery
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Old 09-19-2018, 01:04 PM   #7
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Beautiful trailer. Nice to see the newer mold with sliders and the manual awning. Personally glad to see the comeback of the Carefree Fiesta. All the talk about having to bring the electric awning in during rain and no angle adjustment never sat well with me. The last time I was camping I just lowered one corner of the Fiesta a little bit and it keep our whole area under the awning dry.
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Old 09-19-2018, 04:08 PM   #8
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Nice write up Jan. I do have a couple of questions. On the Oxygenics showerhead, you mentioned that your husband got sprayed when he used the sink. That would mean the bypass knob was up, no?

On the fabric orientation, since the cushions don't have a top or bottom, could you not just rotate them so the pattern is facing the right direction?
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Old 09-19-2018, 05:21 PM   #9
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Nice write up Jan. I do have a couple of questions. On the Oxygenics showerhead, you mentioned that your husband got sprayed when he used the sink. That would mean the bypass knob was up, no?

On the fabric orientation, since the cushions don't have a top or bottom, could you not just rotate them so the pattern is facing the right direction?
Hi: rbryan4... Left hand screws won't fit on the right side... neither will the nails!!! Alf
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Old 09-19-2018, 05:49 PM   #10
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I bought an adapter so my TV would fit on the TV mount. found one on amazon after taking pictures of my TV back and the ETI mount.

What kind of an adapter did you get? We're trying to figure out what to do as we paid for the mount (and really like it as we can lift the TV off easily) and we like our 24" TV. Any chance you could point me in the right direction?

And thanks on the fabric compliment. We wanted a bit of a 'sea-theme' so the fabric has seashells and such (Covington Outdoor Booth Bay Black/Tan ), the flooring (Havana Rum) has a darker/distressed look, and we went with the standard Formica as it kind of reminds me of a sandy/rocky beach (the black trim looks pretty good with the sink and stove). Oh, and we LOVE the sink!! Thank you SO much for posting about it!!!!
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Old 09-19-2018, 05:59 PM   #11
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On the Oxygenics showerhead, you mentioned that your husband got sprayed when he used the sink. That would mean the bypass knob was up, no? On the fabric orientation, since the cushions don't have a top or bottom, could you not just rotate them so the pattern is facing the right direction?

No, the sink bypass knob was down; however, up or down, it still came out the shower head. Plus, we noticed that whenever we turned on the faucet, you could see the shower hose react to the water so we knew water was going up there -- even with the shower head valve off. What we're thinking is that the shower head shutoff doesn't really work and, because the Oxygenics adds air to the water to give it 'oomph', the shower head acted as a siphon and drew the water up and out no matter what we did. With the cheap-O head on, everything works as it should.

With the cushions, in order to get the pattern running in the correct direction after flipping them, the zipper is either on the top of the back cushion or facing the dining table on the bottom cushions. Right now, I'm just going to Scotchgard everything and let it go. If I do flip them, I'll probably be the only one that notices the pattern is upside down -- or maybe I'll just let the zippers show.

I did fail to mention in my post (and this is a 'heads up' to everyone doing custom fabric on their build sheets), we have a LOT of fabric left over!! I am going to measure exactly how much but I know it's yards and yards.
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